iPad Mini: Shelf Life Concerns of the iPad mini

[Chocolatemilty]

Hey macrumors forums readers!

I was having a discussion with a classmate today about the shelf life concerns of the iPad mini having essentially iPad 2 internals. We had a candid and pretty great conversation about it and I arrived at this conclusion - iPad mini, having launched with iOS 6, is almost assuredly getting to iOS 8, and judging by how Apple optimized the 3GS for iOS 6 (yes, I know, features are indeed missing, but 6.1 performance on my bro-in-law's iPhone is better than 5.1 that he was on after a full restore), it very well may make it to iOS 9. iOS 6.1 is running very well on my mini now, and depending on the trajectory of Jony Ive's design aesthetics and the post-Forstall iOS team, time will tell if the OS becomes more efficient or a resource hog (Apple's been pretty good optimizing the OS for devices not far removed from the shelves, though).

What do you guys think is possible for the 1st gen mini? I still see 1st-gen iPads used on the daily, so I'm banking on using my mini until the end of the Obama administration. Hahaha!

[RedCroissant]

Originally Posted by Chocolatemilty

Hey macrumors forums readers!

I was having a discussion with a classmate today about the shelf life concerns of the iPad mini having essentially iPad 2 internals. We had a candid and pretty great conversation about it and I arrived at this conclusion - iPad mini, having launched with iOS 6, is almost assuredly getting to iOS 8, and judging by how Apple optimized the 3GS for iOS 6 (yes, I know, features are indeed missing, but 6.1 performance on my bro-in-law's iPhone is better than 5.1 that he was on after a full restore), it very well may make it to iOS 9. iOS 6.1 is running very well on my mini now, and depending on the trajectory of Jony Ive's design aesthetics and the post-Forstall iOS team, time will tell if the OS becomes more efficient or a resource hog (Apple's been pretty good optimizing the OS for devices not far removed from the shelves, though).

What do you guys think is possible for the 1st gen mini? I still see 1st-gen iPads used on the daily, so I'm banking on using my mini until the end of the Obama administration. Hahaha!

I would say 2 update cycles is a good bet and getting iOS9 would be a bonus. The thing is that the iPad 2 originally shipped with iOS 4.3 and will also most likely be eligible for iOS 7. They have also held onto the 2 now since its release even through the discontinuation of the iPad3. I have an ipad mini and even if I don't get an update for iOS 8, I am more than satisfied with what it can do and am not worried

[flavr]

I agree it will get at least OS8...I think the true limitation of the mini is only 512MB RAM...If Apple would have just bumped that up to 1GB it would have given it more long term performance for future OS and app updates...The A6 and retina would have been icing on the cake, but that RAM is going to be the first thing to become a major issue...

[RedCroissant]

Originally Posted by flavr

I agree it will get at least OS8...I think the true limitation of the mini is only 512MB RAM...If Apple would have just bumped that up to 1GB it would have given it more long term performance for future OS and app updates...The A6 and retina would have been icing on the cake, but that RAM is going to be the first thing to become a major issue...

I understand why people think that the A5 and only 512MB RAM would be a limitation initially, but the same hardware is in the iPhone 4S and I think the fact that the iPad mini is not retina would make the RAM and Processor limitation position almost incorrect. Maybe I'm wrong about this, but I think the mini is a better iOS device than the iPad 2, 1 or even other iOS devices previously released because of the combination of hardware and screen size.

[ucfgrad93]

Originally Posted by RedCroissant

I would say 2 update cycles is a good bet and getting iOS9 would be a bonus.

Agreed. I think that you are good for a couple of cycles as well.

[darngooddesign]

Apple usually supports a minimum of 2 OSes.

[kevroc]

I think future iOS upgrades are going to be very ram intensive. The Mini may see iOS 7 but I highly doubt it will see 8. That's not going to be here for probably 3 years, no way the Mini will run it. The Mini is also more of a throwaway product. At it's price point it's easier to justify an upgrade, so less reason for Apple to ensure it's longevity.

The Mini, being a first rev, will have a very short shelf life. The next Mini will fare much better.

[freediverdude]

Originally Posted by RedCroissant

I understand why people think that the A5 and only 512MB RAM would be a limitation initially, but the same hardware is in the iPhone 4S and I think the fact that the iPad mini is not retina would make the RAM and Processor limitation position almost incorrect. Maybe I'm wrong about this, but I think the mini is a better iOS device than the iPad 2, 1 or even other iOS devices previously released because of the combination of hardware and screen size.

True, I didn't think about it having the iPhone 4S internals. And is it pushing less pixels than the 4S? If so then that speaks well for the mini, no wonder it seems so snappy, lol.

[Batavian]

I've wondered why the iPad 2 doesn't have Siri. Seems like the iPad 2 should be supported as long as the iPad mini.

[Fruit Cake]

It's nothing to do with it's capabilities, remember the iPad is A4 1ghz/256 ram yet the 3GS at 600mhz/256mb ram still gets iOS 6. It's merely how long apple intend to support it. If they still sell it, it will get support, eg iPad 2.

[RedCroissant]

Originally Posted by freediverdude

True, I didn't think about it having the iPhone 4S internals. And is it pushing less pixels than the 4S? If so then that speaks well for the mini, no wonder it seems so snappy, lol.

The iPad mini(163 ppi) is pushing fewer than the 4S(326 ppi), and a little bit more than the iPad2 at(132 pip).

Yeah, I have been more than happy with it and don't regret purchasing it at all(even if the next iteration has retina).

[bohbot16]

I think the 3GS on iOS set a trend for the future of iOS. I wouldn't be surprised if the iPad Mini eventually got iOS 9, but with only half of the new features.

[dave420]

Originally Posted by freediverdude

True, I didn't think about it having the iPhone 4S internals. And is it pushing less pixels than the 4S? If so then that speaks well for the mini, no wonder it seems so snappy, lol.

Originally Posted by RedCroissant

The iPad mini(163 ppi) is pushing fewer than the 4S(326 ppi), and a little bit more than the iPad2 at(132 pip).

Yeah, I have been more than happy with it and don't regret purchasing it at all(even if the next iteration has retina).

The iPad Mini and iPad 2 have the same number of pixels, they are just closer together on the iPad Mini.
The iPad Mini is 1024x768, and the iPhone 4S is 640x960, so the iPad Mini does have more pixels than the iPhone 4S.

[RedCroissant]

Originally Posted by dave420

The iPad Mini and iPad 2 have the same number of pixels, they are just closer together on the iPad Mini.
The iPad Mini is 1024x768, and the iPhone 4S is 640x960, so the iPad Mini does have more pixels than the iPhone 4S.

Fine! Now everyone knows that I can't do math. Thanks, DAVE!